regarding the debt and the deficit, there is this piece from "the washington post." in the debt crisis, ryan was on the sidelines. there is a " further in the body from a republican senator who set up a " i have never viewed it paul as one who gets into the fray from a negotiating standpoint. i do not mean that he cannot do it. i just mean he has chosen not to." becky is on the phone from michigan. caller: good morning. i was trying to think what year it was when ralph nader ran for president. you and only you as far as i know carried a debate. i think there were three people that were other parties. host: it was 2000. caller: i listened to those -- the ones that were not the mainstream democrats and republicans. even though i may not vote for them, that is not what is important. what is important is that every single one of them had at least one just terrific idea for solving some kind of big problem we have a. -- we have. to have those people up there with the democrats and republicans talking about things that have never been talked about before could get the peop